There are a million stories in the naked barrio. Here are some of mine from 2011.
Background music: ‘Viva Tirado’ by The Bullets. Used by permission. Thanks, pochos!
chicano
My militant Pocho Ocho New Year’s resolutions
8. Remove Christmas lights from my Occupy L.A. tent a little earlier this year
7. Scare white folks with the 2012 Doomsday predictions
6. Get Cheech to collect one of my Chicano paintings
5. Train my revolutionary pets Karl Barx and Chairman Meow to attack all Republicanos in mi barrio
Funny, you don’t look Mexican!
“You don’t look Mexican” is something I hear a lot. I hear it from whites, African-Americans, Asians, Mexican nationals, Latinos from Latin America, just about everyone. Of course, in polite company, I usually respond, “Oh, yeah, I get that a lot.”
In my head, however, I usually think, “What, exactly does is a Mexican ‘supposed’ to look like?” This is, in turn, followed by some expletives.
I find it uncanny that, in 2011 with a country and a world that is increasingly multiracial, that educated people still assume that certain people are “supposed” to look one way or another. Boggles my mind.
Razaphobic AZ judge just says ‘nein’ to Mexican-American Studies
Arizona has made it illegal to be brown in their state, now that a judge has ruled that it is illegal to think brown.
Tucson Unified School District’s Mexican-American Studies Department has lost an appeal before a Razaphobic judge and faces the complete dismantling of their academic program. Mexican-American Studies educates brown and non-brown children, but the main problem to Superintendent John Huppenthal is that brown children come out smarter and empowered after taking MAS courses.
Arizona state school officials violate the educational rights of brown children while Sheriff Joe Arpaio allows the violation of brown children.
Cue the banjos!
